Celeriac, or "Root Celery," is still a popular vegetable in Europe and has enjoyed increasing popularity in the U.S. as well. It is a celery that is grown not for its stalks, but for its bulbous root, which has a mild, pleasing celery flavor and is used raw in salads or cooked in soups. The stalks are small, strong-tasting, stringy, and generally unpalatable. If finely chopped, they may be used to flavor soups and other dishes.

Culture is slightly different from regular celery, in that some effort must be put forth in order to harvest a reasonably large bulb in the fall. Plants must be kept well-watered, especially during dry summers. Outer stalks are removed periodically in order to encourage large bulb formation. Bulbs store well after harvested, a definite advantage for pre-1932 communal kitchen cooks. (Plants usually do not produce seeds the first year and are not winter hardy in Iowa, so new seed must be purchased each year. “Large Smooth Prague” is generally the variety of choice.)

Looking for all the world like miniature watermelons, citrons are bound to disappoint anyone who attempts to eat one raw. The flesh is hard, white, and practically tasteless. Citrons are eaten primarily in a pickled form, with the dominant flavoring usually that of cloves and cinnamon. The vines are also quite similar to watermelon, as is this plant's culture. When processing citron, save the seeds, dry them, and plant to thickness of seed when the weather turns warm in late May or early June.

Though grown in Amana gardens, Citron Melon is not a variety peculiar to Amana. Seed is available commercially in the United States, e.g. from Stokes Seeds, Buffalo, NY.